Jak
Jak is the main protagonist of the Jak & Daxter series. He is the main character of all 5 games excluding Daxter (game), although he does make cameos in that game. Biography Not much is known about Jak's childhood from the original Jak and Daxter timeline. He spent time living with his Uncle, and hanging out with his best friend Daxter. He originally had an easy going and simple personality. However, after getting sent into the future and being imprisoned in Jak II, Jak loses his innocence and becomes a much more serious and vengeful person. During Jak 3, he matures and develops a more heroic personality. Early History Jak was born in the Haven City, around the time when a 15-year-old version of himself arrived there. He was the son of Damas, but kiddnapped from him by Veger, who carried out some Eco experiments on him, but then was lost in the catacombs, where found by Kor, who took care of him and needed him in his plans. Then he was rescued from Metal Head leader by a 17-year-old version of himself in the end of the Jak II. To keep the timeline correct, Jak and friends had to send the younger version of himself and The Shadow, back to Sandover Village so that Samos could raise Jak safe from harm until his adventures led him into the future. Also in Jak 3 it has been revealed not only that Damas is Jak's father, but that Jak may be great warrior Mar--meaning he traveled through time to basically set up all of his own adventures. As a young boy living in Sandover Village, Jak could often be found hanging out with his best friend Daxter. They would usually be caught doing dangerous things that their guardian, Samos the Green Sage, forbade them from doing. ]] Jak & Daxter: The Precursor Legacy In Jak and Daxter: The Precursor Legacy, Jak (who was then fifteen) and Daxter were in Ollie's speed boat sailing to Misty Island, a place Samos warned them to avoid. Once they arrived, they discovered an army of Lurkers taking orders from a mysterious man and woman. One of the Lurkers noticed the boys' presence as they moved on. They continued wandering until they came upon a vat of Dark Eco, where they located a Precursor artifact. The aforementioned Lurker approaches, picking a fight with them. Jak threw the Red Eco artifact at the Lurker, but the explosion threw him backward, causing him to knock Daxter into the Dark Eco where instead of being killed, he transforms into an ottsel. Upon arriving at Samos' hut, he tells them to seek out a sage named Gol Acheron in order to change Daxter back to his human form. Samos would teleport them to his site, but strangely the other sages had their teleporters deactivated. With the aid of Samos and his daughter Keira Hagai, Jak and Daxter set out on a journey across the island in search of Gol. First Jak and Daxter practice at Geyser Rock, where Jak learns how to channel Green Eco and Blue Eco. When Jak and Daxter return to the hut, Samos tells them to look for Power Cells to power Keira's A-Grav Zoomer to get past Fire Canyon to Rock Village, where the Blue Sage lives. The duo do missions in Sandover Village, Misty Island, Forbidden Jungle, and Sentinel Beach for people like Ollie, Tweedledove Perch, Explorer, Sculptor, Mayor Manac, and Farmer Zeb. In Sentinel Beach Jak and Daxter help Tweedledove Perch knock a Flut-Flut from the edge of a cliff, where it then hatches (and, upon seeing Daxter, thinks he's the mother). In the Forbidden Jungle they battle the Dark Eco Plant, and on Misty Island, Jak learns how to channel Red Eco. Eventually they get enough Power Cells to power the Zoomer. Jak and Daxter flew through Fire Canyon and opened the warp gate at the Blue Sage's hut in Rock Village. Keira and Samos come to the hut, only learn that the Blue Sage is gone and Klaww, a massive rock giant, is hurling flaming boulders and attacking the village. Keira needed Jak's help to find more Power Cells to work the Blue Eco Rock Lifter to get to the Mountain Pass. Like in the Village, Jak completes several missions in Boggy Swamp, Lost Precursor City, and Precursor Basin for the Warrior, Boggy Billy, Gambler, and the Geologist. Jak also learns how to channel Yellow Eco. Jak and Daxter get to the Mountain Pass to battle Klaww. After defeating Klaww, Jak and Daxter continue through the Mountain Pass to the Volcanic Crater. Upon arriving to the Red Sage's hut, Gol Acheron presents himself along with his sister Maia and their twisted plans of reshaping the world with Dark Eco. As it turned out, Gol and Maia were the very same people who were commanding the Lurkers on Misty Island. Gol and Maia kidnapped the Blue and Red Sages. After Gol and Maia return to their lair, Jak and Daxter continue finding Power Cells to power the Zoomer to pass the Lava Tube. Jak helps Willard & Gordy and finds Power Cells in Snowy Mountain and Spider Cave. After doing all this, he enters the Lava Tube which leads to Gol & Maia's Citadel. Shortly after arriving at the Citadel, Keira tells them that Samos has been kidnapped by Goland Maia. Daxter tries to assure her that they've got things under control, at which point Keira angrily mentions that Lurker armies were also growing across the land. Jak and Daxter then set out to Gol and Maia's Citadel to free the four abducted Sages. After they succeed, the Sages use their power to deactivate the barrier surrounding an ancient Precursor Robot, which Gol and Maia intended to use to open the Dark Eco Silo. Jak managed to destroy the robot with the aid of Light Eco. The robot explodes, but the head (with Gol and Maia inside) falls inside the Dark Eco. The silo shuts with them inside, presumably destroying them. An important, running joke later in the series, is that Jak is never actually seen kissing anyone; at the end of the game, he and Keira attempt to kiss, but are interrupted by Daxter. It was then that Jak opened an ancient Precursor door with the aid of 100 Power Cells that would reveal a large door with a mysterious white light inside. Lack of dialogue Jak doesn't have any dialogue in the first game, but does start speaking after Jak II. His lack of dialogue in the first is a bit of a mystery, since it is unknown whether he is actually mute or simply isn't given a chance to talk (Daxter often interrupts Jak just as he opens his mouth to say something, and looks irritated when this happens). He also looks annoyed at Daxter's comment in Jak II of, "Maybe this guy's a mute like you used to be," when they meet Torn. This also could be a reference to the Crash Bandicoot series; Crash does not talk at all. Jak II "Ah but this child is such a part of this, such a part of YOU. Don't you reconize him? The boy is YOU Jak!" ''-Metal Kor talking to Jak Right after the events of ''Jak and Daxter: The Precursor Legacy, Jak II starts off with Jak, Daxter, Keira and Samos the Sage find out that the Rift Rider interacted with a Precursor Ring. When they open it, both the Rift Rider and the passengers are transported 300 years into the future to a dystopia (as learned later in the game) called Haven City. Jak was immediately arrested by the Krimzon Guards and experimented on with Dark Eco for two years (making Jak seventeen years old) by Baron Praxis, Haven City's tyrant. This gave him the ability to morph into a darker, more powerful version of himself, which never directly referred to by name; however, outside the game this form is known as Dark Jak (An interesting note is that in Jak X, Jak occasionally threatens his enemies that he'll turn into Dark Jak). The experiment also resulted in him speaking; he also seemed to gain a thirst for vengeance (evident by his first words of, "I'm gonna kill Praxis!") and compared to his younger self from the first game, he has become much more serious in terms of personality. Daxter found Jak in the KG Fortress and freed him. The duo are reunited and escape the Fortress out into the city streets. Jak ends up in the Slums where he meets Kor and the last heir to the throne of Haven City (the Kid). Jak fights more Guards to defend them and realizes the guards are on the hunt for him. During the fight, he turns into Dark Jak - when he turns back, it seems as though he's having trouble controlling his dark powers. Impressed by his fighting, Kor tells them about the Underground and that they are looking to recruit skilled fighters like Jak. Jak and Daxter go to the Underground and find Torn and Tess. Torn gives Jak and Daxter a mission to go to Dead Town and steal the Baron's Banner. Jak succeeds in this task, and thus becomes a member of the Underground resistance. Jak, however, soon becomes caught in a massive struggle to save the city from the Metal-Heads in his race for the Precursor Stone (said to contain the last Precursor of that time). He also finds himself becoming more and more involved with ever important "Kid", a young boy constantly under the watch of the Underground (particularly old Kor). He's deemed exceedingly valuable due to rumors that he may be the lost heir to the Haven City's throne, as evidenced by the amulet around his neck. Jak later learns in the Metal Head nest (from the leader itself) that he was the Kid's future self, having been sent into the past as a child to grow up safely away from Metal Head Leader so that he could eventually defeat him. Therefore, he actually belonged in the time of Haven City. Jak then kills the leader (who turned out to be Kor) and scatters the Metal Heads. Young Jak touches the stone (due to being tainted with Dark Eco, only his younger self can open it) and meets the Precursor inside the Precursor Egg, who balances the Dark Eco in Jak with Light Eco. He sent his child self as well as the Young Samos into the past in an effort to keep the timeline intact. As the heroes celebrate after defeating the Metal Head leader, Jak and Keira once again try to kiss... only for Daxter to interrupt them, although it was directed toward a very drunk Onin. Jak 3 Jak is now eighteen. One year after saving Haven City, it once again became embroiled in chaos as three different groups, the Krimzon Guard Death-Bots, the surviving Metal-Heads, and the Freedom League, fight for control of Haven City. The people of Haven City have grown distrustful of Jak and his Dark Powers. As rumors spread of Jak's affiliation with Krew and Kor, the populace targets him as the cause of its unrest. Even though his friends claim his innocence, Count Veger, head of the Haven City Council under a former lieutenant of Baron Praxis, banishes him to the Wasteland. There he's found by Damas, who used to reign over Haven City as king but was betrayed by Baron Praxis while Jak was a child, and banished him to the Wasteland where he founded Spargus City. Jak is forced to prove himself in the arena to see if he is capable of survival. During this time, Jak was given a mission to save the world from the Day Star, even though he resented the idea of being a hero again, upset over the people abandoning him. It was due to his heavy involvement, the return of Errol, and much more that forced him to save the world again. Along the way, he was given Light Eco powers, which allow him to become Light Jak. This balances the Dark Eco in him, and his personality also seems to grow less angry and vengeful. He uses his newfound powers to help him defeat various creatures. Over the course of the game, he forges a close bond with Damas. Jak reveals to Damas that he never knew his father, and later on, Damas confides in Jak that he lost his son. Sadly, Jak does not learn that the King Damas was his father until after Damas is killed during an assault on the Metal Head part of the city; the vehicle is hit by a missile and, when it overturns, fatally crushes Damas. Before Damas dies, however, Jak learned his birth name was Mar, which Naughty Dog has confirmed on numerous occasions makes him the great warrior and founder of Haven City. Count Veger then appears and tells him that he took him from Damas to experiment with his Eco powers, which angers Jak (to the point of turning into Dark Jak very briefly). Jak then leaves to chase Count Veger deep inside the planet where he discovers the true nature of the Precursors: Ottsels. Despite appearance, their powers manage to help Jak defeat the Dark Maker Ship. Eventually Jak destroyed Errol, saving the world from his plan to unleash the Dark Makers upon it. Jak and Daxter: The Lost Frontier Right after Jak 3, Jak has to help Keira become a "Sage" and to do so, they have to travel to the Brink, the very edge of the world that the Precursors seemed to have left unfinished. Jak X: Combat Racing One year after his previous adventure, (Jak is now nineteen) Jak and his friends (Daxter, Keira, Torn, and Ashelin) are invited to the reading of Krew's will, who was blown up in the events of Jak II. In the past, Krew had a daughter, Rayn, who now also arrives with her father's will. The team toasts, then watches a hologram of Krew's will. In that will Krew reveals that the wine they have just finished drinking was laced with poison. Krew claims that if they race in Kras City in a racing competition and win, they receive the antidote to the poison. It was Krew's dream to make the ultimate racing team and win the Kras City Grand Championship. The heroes reluctantly accept, having no other choice. After entering their first race they meet G.T. Blitz, a self-centered and arrogant Race Commentator. Pulled into the world of racing, Jak and his friends learn of a rival racing team named the Mizo Dream Team. As they get better, Mizo, a crime gang lord, loses more money to bets. Mercenary drivers pile up, as does Mizo's hatred for Jak and his team. On the way, they meet an infamous racer named Razer, who came out of retirement to race Jak. Also appearing are Sig, Kleiver, Samos, Pecker (who becomes a host on GT Blitz's show a little way through the game), and UR-86, a Krimzon Death-Bot with a reputation for killings on the racetracks. At the end of the game it is revealed that G.T. Blitz is Mizo in disguise as he steals the antidotes and races Jak in one last race in which he is killed in an explosion. Back in Kras City, after they have been cured by the antidote, more of Krew's will is heard and it reveals that not only was Rayn not poisoned, everything was merely an elaborate plot to overtake Mizo and take over Kras City for Krew's Crime Family, of which Rayn is now the leader. As Rayn drives away, she states over the phone to (presumably) her criminal underlings to spare Jak and his friends. The game ends with Jak and Keira finally kissing. Powers Since his childhood Jak has specific powers, which he could use through Eco. The main thing of it is that he can channel any type of Eco through his body without being influenced for very long, as were the Sages. Firstly he was seen using his powers after he touched a Red Eco bomb on the Misty Island, and during the first game he could heal himself and some living things around him with Green Eco, become much stronger with Red, speed up and have some telekenesis with Blue and shoot fireballs with Yellow. All these powers may be the result of Veger's experiments, or possibly something in his genes, because he is the one from The House Of Mar, or maybe because he is Mar himself. In Jak II, after the experiments of Praxis on him for the Dark Warrior programme, the dark side of him developed, along with its own powers; and in Jak 3 the light side emerged, which has its own powers as well. However, in Jak 3 he could borrow some Green Eco with him to bestroy the Dark Plants, meaning that he still has some of his old powers. In The Lost Frontier Jak cannot turn into Dark or Light Jak any more, so he has to use the existing Eco in his normal form. Also he can use some specific crystals, which allow him to cross some uncrossable places like lava, but it seems to cost Dark Eco. Voices Jak's trademark in the first game is that he doesn't speak, although every time Jak jumps or spins he makes grunts or yells. Sometimes if the player gets hit, he will quickly say "Ouch," though it should be noted that Jak may not have been mute in the first game. There are several scenes in which Jak appears as if he is about to say something but is then interrupted either by Daxter, or by another character. In a controversial move by Naughty Dog, he speaks from Jak II onwards. In a reference to this, just before Jak speaks for the first time in Jak II, Daxter pleads with him to "Say something! Just this once!". Throughout the rest of the series, Daxter makes occasional comments about Jak's previous silence, like his comments in Jak II: "Sorry about him, he's new to the whole conversation thing" and "Maybe he's a mute. You know, like you used to be." Other Appearances/Cameos * Jak appeared as an unlockable skin in Ratchet: Deadlocked. * Jak appeared in Everybody's Golf 4 as a character with Daxter as his caddy. * Jak and Daxter appear on posters in Clank's apartment and Allgon City in Ratchet and Clank: Going Commando. * Jak is seen in Daxter in the back of a prison vehicle, over the security cameras, and at the end of the game. * It is unsure as of the moment whether or not this adverisement is officially made by Naughty Dog, but Jak also "sponsors" Levi Jeans in a CG render for Jak X *here is a comedic shot at how much denim Jak wears in the fourth installment. Trivia * In Jak 3 and Jak II, if you walk up to the mirror that is cracked in The Naughty Ottsel, Jak's reflection will have Dark Jak horns. * At the end movie of Jak 3, Jak interrupts Daxter and Tess during their kiss rather than Daxter interrupting Jak and Keira in a kiss. * In all of the Jak games (with the exception of Daxter) Jak has his signature shoulder plate, but it changes look in all four games. In addition, no matter what outfit he has on throughout the games, he is always seen wearing a pair of goggles and a backpack-like object (which also serves as the holster for the Morph Gun and Jet Board); however, while being experimented on by Baron Praxis, Jak is only seen wearing rags without the goggles or backpack. Strangely enough, Daxter has them with them when he gives Jak his new clothes after rescuing him. * Once in a while in Jak 3, if you die several times, Daxter will say something to you like he would in Jak and Daxter: The Precursor Legacy. Jak's Girlfriends In the first two games of the series, Jak has a crush on Keira. In Jak and Daxter: The Precursor Legacy, they are shy about this possibly due to them still being young teenagers, but when they are finally about to kiss at the end of the game, Daxter interupts them. In Jak II, their relationship becomes more strained due to Jak taking on a more aggresive personality because of his lust for revenge and Dark Eco treatments. However, in Jak 3, he ends up hooking up with Ashelin and ending the game with Ashelin holding his shoulder. The in-game commentary states that this should have been a kiss, but the developers decided to go with the shoulder-holding as it gave the same effect. But in Jak X, Jak and Keira were together again and the story ended with a kiss. There was much uproar by Jak and Daxter fans when Jak ended up being with Ashelin in Jak 3. Some fans believe this is why Naughty Dog decided to make Jak be with Keira again. In The Lost Frontier, Phoenix tells Keira to do what her heart desires, in response she asks Jak what to do. Etymology Like the most part of the character's names, Jak's name spawns from the ordinary name Jack, with references to some languages. Category: Characters